Your bathroom feels outdated or worn out, or you no longer like the way it looks. It makes sense that you want one contractor to do all the work and fix everything at once. However, remodeling everything introduces more cost, timelines, and disruption than you might expect.
As a tub and shower remodeling specialist, Shugarman’s Bath has seen how one contractor doing everything typically turns out for many homeowners. Their remodeling projects take extra time, often change in cost, and are constantly disrupted.
In this article, you’ll learn whether you should remodel the whole bathroom, how budget and timelines factor into the decision, and why starting with the tub and shower area is the best way to plan a full bathroom remodel. By the end, you’ll have a more straightforward path forward and know how to best approach your project.
Table of Contents:
- Should I Remodel My Whole Bathroom or Just the Tub or Shower?
- How Long Does a Full Bathroom Remodel Usually Take?
- How Should I Plan a Full Bathroom Remodel Without Wasting Money?
- How Does Shugarman’s Bath Help Plan Your Bathroom Remodel the Right Way?
Should I Remodel My Whole Bathroom or Just the Tub or Shower?
If you want (or feel the need) to remodel your whole bathroom, that’s totally fine. If you go this route, we encourage you to start with the tub and shower area first. You don’t want to do everything at once. Instead, do it as a process.
In most bathrooms, the tub and shower area is the most complex, expensive, and failure-prone part of the space. Waterproofing failures, plumbing issues, and structural movement from framing, daily use, and moisture exposure start in this area. If your tub or shower fails, water can get behind the walls, cause structural damage, let mold run rampant, and damage adjacent rooms.
You want someone who understands how to work in the tub and shower area to make the rest of your bathroom remodel seamless. Starting with the tub or shower allows you to:
- Eliminate the highest-risk portion of a full bathroom remodel quickly
- Reduce how long your bathroom is out of commission
- Plan the rest of the updates with less worry and streamline the entire process
How Long Does a Full Bathroom Remodel Usually Take?
A full bathroom remodel typically takes around 2-4 weeks, depending on the scale of the project. There are multiple trades involved, additional scheduling to coordinate, and opportunities for delays. You have plumbing, electrical, flooring, cabinetry, paint, and other trades stacked on top of each other.
Timelines are often dependent on contractor schedules and coordination, which can change with little notice.
In contrast, a tub and shower remodel can often be completed in 1-2 days by a specialist. The process can take longer if the tub and shower area is a larger project.
There is a structured step-by-step tub and shower installation process that a specialist takes since they do the same work daily.
How Should I Plan a Full Bathroom Remodel Without Wasting Money?
Plan your bathroom remodel in phases. As much as you might want it to, not everything needs to be done at once. It’s usually done in a long, drawn-out process. Instead, streamline your full bathroom remodeling process.
Your plan could look like this:
- Remodel the tub and shower area first
- Complete all remaining bathroom plumbing work
- Move on to flooring, vanity, paint, lighting, and fixtures
You can hire a separate contractor or licensed handyman to finish the rest of your bathroom remodel. Heck, you can do the rest of the project yourself!
You can also plan your complete bathroom remodel on your budget. According to the 2025 Cost vs. Value Report, the cost of a midrange complete bathroom remodel is $26,138. We’ve found that a high-quality tub or shower remodel or conversion costs roughly 70% of a complete bathroom remodel.
You can start by having the tub and shower area done reliably and saving a little more before going to the next step.
How Does Shugarman’s Bath Help Plan Your Bathroom Remodel the Right Way?
Your bathroom remodel doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing project. That route is infamous for weeks of disruption that seem unavoidable. Instead, plan your bathroom remodel in phases to make it less stressful.
Start with the tub and shower area so you can manage costs, timelines, and make decisions that work best for you. Shugarman’s Bath can help you with the most complex part of the bathroom first. We’ll make sure the tub and shower area is done correctly and is waterproof. When this part is correct, everything else can fall into place.
Read our article on whether or not Shugarman’s Bath is qualified to do your tub or shower remodel. That way, you can better understand the scope of our work as specialists.
Want to take the next step toward remodeling your bathroom? Start by scheduling a consultation with Shugarman’s Bath to see what we can do with your tub and shower area.
Topics:
